2017 Ford Escape body and structure problems
62 of the 2,689 complaints owners filed with NHTSA about the 2017 Ford Escape name the body and structure (NHTSA’s “Structure” heading — body panels, frame, roof rails, trim and glass as fitted). Filed under the same heading: 13 manufacturer bulletins. Every figure below is a document in a federal file, linked; none is a failure rate, and none is a verdict on any one car.
What owners filed about the body and structure
Source: NHTSA complaint database3 of the 62 reports a crash · 0 a fire · 4 injuries. Self-reported, unverified.
Filed per year: 2016: 1 · 2017: 8 · 2018: 7 · 2019: 4 · 2020: 8 · 2021: 8 · 2022: 9 · 2023: 4 · 2024: 7 · 2025: 4 · 2026: 2
Half of the 31 owners who gave an odometer reading reported the body and structure problem between 13,000 and 59,000 miles. A median of reports, not the life of a part.
2,689 complaints in all about the 2017 Ford Escape, 2 filed in 2026. The whole picture, every system →
Counts are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many of these were sold; nothing here is a rate. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so “Structure” means the same area of the vehicle, not one fault.
Across model years: Ford Escape body and structure problems, every year on file →
In owners’ own words
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseFiled with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, about the body and structure. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed; unverified reports — what was said, not a finding that it was true.
Just pulled out of the gas station. Heard a loud boom. Pulled into nearby parking lot. Discovered passenger rear tire had blown and knocked the rear bottom door panel off. The condition of the tire was horrific! If I had been on the highway traveling at a high rate of speed the results could have been fatal.
I leased a new 2017 Ford Escape with 379 miles on the odometer. When I drove the car home from the dealership, it made a creaking noise by my right ear when I pulled into the driveway. I took vehicle back to the dealer a few days after the noise was made.
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. While driving 40 MPH or above, the contact heard a rattling sound coming from underneath the vehicle, and felt shaking. The vehicle was taken to bob tomes Ford (950 s central expy, mckinney, tx 75070), but the cause of the failure could not be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired.
My car was stopped on the property's driveway, transmission was in park. I was standing outside the car, and as I opened the driver's door to get in, the bottom corner of door gouged my lower left leg and peeled back a significant chunk of tissue.
Seems that the paint chips very easily/// also the Ford emblem somehow broke // just notice chips while watching car
What is on file about the body and structure
Source: NHTSA recalls, investigations and manufacturer communications13 manufacturer bulletins filed under this heading
The 0 newest are listed; every one is on the model year’s page. Quote the document number at a service desk — it is a diagnosis the maker has already written down.
Other systems with a record on the 2017 Ford Escape
Source: the same files- engine problems 2,082 complaints
- transmission and drivetrain problems 396 complaints
- electrical problems 156 complaints
Common questions
Source: NHTSA complaint database, recalls and manufacturer communicationsAre body and structure problems common on the 2017 Ford Escape?
They are documented: NHTSA holds 62 owner complaints naming the body and structure on this model year (2% of everything owners filed about it), and 13 manufacturer bulletins are filed under the same heading. Whether it is a problem on one particular car is a diagnosis, not a count, and a count says nothing about how many were sold.
Is there a recall for the body and structure on the 2017 Ford Escape?
No recall campaign is filed under this heading for this model year (there are 4 filed under other headings). A bulletin is not a recall: it carries no federal duty to repair for free.
When do body and structure problems show up on the 2017 Ford Escape?
Owners who gave an odometer reading reported it at a median of 40,000 miles; half of them between 13,000 and 59,000. That is when reports cluster, not the life of a part.
What does NHTSA's "Structure" heading cover?
Body panels, frame, roof rails, trim and glass as fitted. Owners choose the heading when they file, so it says which area of the vehicle the complaint is about, not which part failed.